Round, Catch and Canon Club Snuff Box 

A spectacular table snuff box from the ‘Round Catch and Canon Club’, their title engraved onto a gold metal belt with buckle device, the hinged lid raised with a shaped gold metal thumb-piece; the whole made from fine and wonderful burr-wood.

4 5/8 in x 3 1/2 in x 1 3/4 in

A round, catch or canon are all musical compositions, singers repeating the same melody beginning at different times yet in harmony. The earliest secular round is the thirteenth century “Summer is icumen in” and the first substantial collection dates from the time of Henry VIII; 1515. From thereon composers wrote and musicians composed these catches and canons, sung by musicians in pubs or clubs.
The big change came in 1761 with the formation of the Noblemen and Gentlemen’s Club and the decision to award prizes. Competition encouraged the formation of many clubs across the United Kingdom such as the Hibernian Catch Club of Dublin and the Canterbury Catch Club.

The last to exist from the 19th century was the Round Catch and Canon Club, established in 1843 and wound up in 1911.